If we don't give evangelism top priority, we may be a dead church
in two generations.
Eight Reasons to Reach the Lost
Here are eight biblical reasons why we should commit to reaching lost
people.
1. People who don't know Jesus Christ as a personal Savior are eternally
lost. Heaven and hell are both realities. Today many people don't
believe hell exists; however, unbelief doesn't change the reality. Jumping
off a six-story building because you don't believe in the law of gravity
doesn't change the destruction of the body upon impact.
The Bible is clear about the reality of hell. Those who don't know
Jesus Christ as Savior will spend eternity there: "For the wages of
sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our
Lord" (Romans 6:23; see also John 14:6; Acts 4:12; and Romans 3:23).
2. God loves the lost and desires that they be saved and spend eternity
with Him. God's desire for relationship with the lost is seen in
the sacrifice of His Son: "For God so loved the world that he gave his
one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but
have eternal life" (John 3:16). God "wants all men to be saved and to
come to a knowledge of the truth" (1 Timothy 2:3, 4). The apostle Peter
said that "the Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand
slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but
everyone to come to repentance" (2 Peter 3:9).
3. Jesus' primary mission was to seek the lost. "For the Son
of Man came to seek and to save what was lost" (Luke 19:10). Christ
came to earth for the purpose of restoring lost men to God. In the parable
of the Prodigal Son Jesus describes the father waiting patiently for
his son to come home. In the parable of the lost sheep He says the shepherd
leaves the flock of 99 to search for one lost sheep.
4. Jesus commanded the Church to evangelize. "Therefore go and
make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father
and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything
I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end
of the age" (Matthew 28:19, 20).
One Sunday a minister began his sermon like this: "I'd like to make
three points today. First, millions of people around the world are going
to hell. Second most of us here today do not give a damn about it."
After a lengthy pause, he continued. "Third, you are more concerned
that I, your pastor, said the word damn than you are about the millions
of people going to hell." Having their undivided attention, he proceeded
to preach on putting faith into action.
Unfortunately, we more often concerned about insignificant things than
we are about the eternal business of the King of Kings.
5. God chose Christians to share the good news with the lost.
God's primary means for reaching the lost is not angels or supernatural
experiences, but Christians. He has chosen to use redeemed, forgiven
sinners to reach unredeemed, unforgiven sinners. We may never know or
understand why God chose us to carry His message but it should motivate
and challenge us. Paul emphasized this point: "As the Scripture says,
'Anyone who trusts in him will never be put to shame.' For there is
no difference between Jew and Gentile--the same Lord is Lord of all
and richly blesses all who call on him, for, 'Everyone who calls on
the name of the Lord will be saved.' How then, can they call on the
one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of
whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching
to them?" (Romans 10:11-14). Paul concluded by saying, "Consequently,
faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through
the word of Christ" (Romans 10:17). Through sharing the word of Christ,
we help people come to Christ.
6. Someone faithfully shared the good news with us. We are part
of God's family because someone--a parent, teacher, friend, or relative--told
us about our sinfulness and need for a Savior. Paul admonished Timothy,
"And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses
entrust to reliable men who will also be qualified to teach others"
(2 Timothy 2:2). As leaders and workers we must be faithful to the Master.
We can keep busy doing religious things and neglect to bring people
to Christ. When was the last time you were instrumental in bringing
someone to Christ? Research indicates that 96 percent of born-again
Christians have never lead another person to Christ. Either evangelizing
is not a priority, or our relationship with Jesus has become routine.
Will our friends and family point their fingers at us for not sharing
the gospel with them when they are eternally separated from God?
7. We demonstrate our love for God. Jesus said, "If you love
me, you will obey what I command" (John 14:15). He commanded us to go
and make disciples, to share our faith and His love to the lost. To
not obey expresses our lack of love. We can make excuses for not sharing
Christ, but Satan uses them to keep Christians from sharing the good
news. Satan's greatest tactic is to silence the voice of Christians
and destroy their witness through dishonorable living.
The greater our love, the more intense our passion for reaching the
lost. An incident in the ministry of George Sweeting, president of Moody
Bible Institute, illustrates this point. One day a woman came to him
in deep distress. "I have been a Christian for 20 years," she said,
"yet I'm not aware that I've ever led anyone to the Lord. I've memorized
many Scripture verses and know how to meet the objections of the unconverted.
But no one has made a decision for Christ. Why hasn't God been using
me?"
Wanting to help, he asked, "Have you ever wept for the unsaved and
prayed for their conversion? Perhaps your failure hasn't been so much
from a lack of knowledge as from a lack of love. When a person genuine
compassion for the lost, he'll weep over them and yearn for their salvation."
The woman went to her room and began to pray earnestly for her sister.
Then, with a tender heart, she went to visit her. Putting her arms around
her sister, she said, "More than anything in this world, I want you
to become a Christian." That evening during the church service her sister
publicly received Christ and asked for His forgiveness.
8. Only the gospel can change our world. "Righteousness exalts
a nation, but sin is a disgrace to any people" (Proverbs 14:34). Through
teaching, preaching, sharing, and living the principles of the Kingdom,
the church has the greatest potential in the world The church is God's
idea; God established it, so it's destined to succeed. However, each
local church is accountable to God to live and teach the good news.
As righteousness increases, so does God's blessing upon a nation. We
need churches that are more concerned about developed megaministries
than becoming megachurches. Megaministries spiritually influence their
communities; megachurches just have a lot of people in attendance.
Churches who care about the lost take action. Here are some things
you and your church can do:
- Identify, list, and pray regularly for lost family, friends, and
neighbors.
- Daily ask God to increase your burden for the lost and to open doors
for you to share His love.
- Make evangelism a priority in each class, group, and ministry.
- Establish goals to increase enrollment, attendance, and contacts.
- Provide training on how to share your faith.
- Provide outreach Bible studies and seminars to meet peoples' needs.
(Sequence Evangelism Seminars. Contact the Sunday School Promotion
and Training Department for more information.)
- Implement the principles of the Church Growth Spiral in your church
and Sunday school (Order number 714-898, $39.95).
- Provide training for workers in all types of ministry.
- Help people to identify and develop their ministry gifts.
- Divide classes into care groups to provide fellowship.
Self-centeredness, wrong priorities, and worldly values often keep
the church from doing the important things. As Christians we must make
Christ's priority our priority. The lost matter to God, and they will
matter to us when we keep first thing first.
A Parable
Once upon a time, a church staff was looking for teachers.
Some adults said, "I don't want to leave the fellowship and study in
my own class." (But the drug pusher said, "Not even the threat of jail
will keep me from working with your children.")
Other adults said, "I could never give the time required to plan
lessons and attend teachers' meetings." (But the pusher, the porno
book dealer, and the movie producer said, "We'll stay open all hours
to win the minds of the kids.")
Still more adults said, "I'm unsuited, untrained, and unable to work
with children, preschoolers or youth." (But the movie producer said,
"We'll study, survey, and spend millions to produce whatever attracts
kids.")
So the adults stayed in their classes, enjoyed the fellowship and
Bible study, went out of town on weekends, and made plans for Wednesday
or Sunday nights instead of attending teachers' meetings.
When Sunday came, the children went to their classes. No one was
there except the church staff who tried to assure them someone would
come to teach them--soon. But no one ever came, and the young children
quit coming. They found others to listen and care about what they
did and what went into their minds.
Keep
First Things First